(AP) A new federal report says North Carolina workers are finding more doors opening to jobs.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said Friday that North Carolina showed the country’s second-largest employment increase in March, adding nearly 20,000 jobs. Florida led the 34 states where nonfarm payrolls increased last month.

North Carolina’s jobless rate also was below the national average for the second straight month. The state’s unemployment rate fell to 6.3 percent, the lowest it’s been in more than five years and below the national average of 6.7 percent.

North Carolina trailed only South Carolina for the states with the largest unemployment rate declines in the past year. North Carolina had an 8.5 percent jobless rate in March 2013.

State officials report a more-detailed jobs report for March on Monday.

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